Power Play: Realms in Flux
by Obelisk of Light
Summary: Raiden's invasion of Outworld leaves Kotal Kahn with mixed blessings. As Fujin comes to terms with his brother's corruption, an old enemy of Earthrealm resurfaces with a new agenda. (Set during and post-MKX. Story, comic and arcade ending spoilers.)
1. Dominion

**Disclaimer:** All recognisable characters and settings from the _Mortal Kombat_ franchise belong to Netherrealm Studios, DC Comics and Warner Bros. I make no monetary profit from publishing this story.

 **Chapter One**

 **Dominion**

The night air of the tropical forest lay heavily around the Emperor of Outworld and his sparse travelling company. Despite the Sun's welcome aid during the daytime, they were close to exhaustion from their long journey from New Z'unkahrah to this place, splitting up along the way and re-grouping once to throw off any possible spies who sought to tail them. But they would not stop to rest now, not when their destination was so close.

"My Emperor," the sole Zaterran of their group whispered. "Are you sure of this course of action?"

In spite of himself, despite the dire events of the past three days that had all but forced Kotal Kahn to travel away from his subjects, the Osh-Tekk felt the corners of his mouth twitch at Reptile's ever-present concern.

"We have no choice, Reptile," he remarked softly. "The _devil's_ actions must not go unpunished."

The Kahn lowered the hood of his grey travelling cloak. His dented bronze helm, whose eagle feathers were plucked and dishevelled, glinted in the moonlight. His once-immaculate war paint was cracked and chipped in many places. Despite the presence of his subordinates, his less-than-kingly appearance scarcely mattered to him at the moment.

His grip tightened on the reins of his Reptilian steed as he proceeded to lead his mount on foot. He ignored the fleeting pain from the newly-formed Lichtenberg scars on his right hand and forearm as he led the way, while three of his Osh-Tekk guards, who were also hooded and cloaked, kept a watch for any followers as the company moved forward.

* * *

 _It was a retaliation Kotal Kahn had not anticipated, and he was about to pay dearly for his lack of foresight._

 _Outworld's ruler roared in excruciating pain as his enemy's lightning surged into him, electrocuting him - not fatally, yet with enough power to immobilize him._

 _The Thunder God, who was unscathed save for a cut or two on his arms, used one more burst of lightning to force the Osh-Tekk Emperor to the grounds of his own courtyard._

" _Look around you,_ Emperor, _" Raiden spoke. A strangely calm breeze blew his silver hair around but left his straw hat undisturbed. The red glow of his pupil-less eyes intensified, even as Kotal got to his feet, taking a sickle from the ground for another attempt to attack Earthrealm's Protector. Kotal's bare right forearm burned as if the Sun itself had cursed him. "Your resistance has led to many senseless deaths. Do you_ truly _wish for more?"_

 _He looked around, breathing hard. Scores of Osh-Tekk warriors and yellow-clad Shirai Ryu lay dead around them in the Emperor's courtyard; the ninjas who were still standing outnumbered his Osh-Tekk forces. The Kahn's weapons were scattered around him, as Raiden had deflected nearly every blow and disarmed the ruler at nearly every turn. Scorch marks, blood and guts marred the grounds; the surrounding buildings also bore the scars of Raiden and Scorpion's powers. Kotal Kahn's largest unfinished statue was in ruins; split into large pieces just beyond the courtyard proper. Dark clouds enveloped Z'unkahrah's afternoon sky, undoubtedly the deity's doing._

 _As Raiden awaited the Emperor's decision, his arms still enveloped with crackling electricity, a foolhardy Osh-Tekk guard charged silently at the Thunder God in an attempt to stab him from behind. Raiden teleported, re-materialised behind the guard and unleashed a torrent of divine lightning upon him before he could do anything but turn. Kotal's soldier was dead before he hit the ground in a smoking heap._

 _Seeing the futility of the battle, Kotal let go of his sickle and dropped to one knee in surrender. "I yield," he declared reluctantly._

 _A shuffling noise made the humiliated Emperor to look to his right. A man whose eyes blazed with supernatural blue fire – Scorpion, the leader of the Shirai Ryu ninja – was dragging a dazed Erron Black to them by the latter's scarf. Scorpion dumped the mercenary next to Kotal as if he was a sack of coal. A swollen eye seemed to be the most prominent of Black's injuries._

 _Reptile and Ermac would have turned the tide of battle, Kotal supposed bitterly, but they were not anywhere near New Z'unkahrah, or anywhere within the Realm of Outworld. Ferra had been rendered unfit to fight sometime before this invasion._

 _The God of Thunder raised a hand to the heavens, calling down a bright bolt of lightning to it with a deafening boom of thunder, heralding the end of his assault._

" _For your invasion of Earthrealm in violation of the Reiko Accords, I, Raiden, God of Thunder and Protector of Earthrealm, hereby declare you, Kotal Kahn, to be the ruler of Outworld no longer. There will be no more Kahns. Outworld is allied with Earthrealm once more, and is part of_ my _dominion."_

* * *

An hour's journey later, the vegetation around the Outworlders had thickened to the point that it was futile to take the beasts through.

He signalled the guardsmen to stop and watch over their steeds, and beckoned Reptile to stay with him.

Conversation was scarce for the next hour as Kotal Kahn and Reptile cut through the vegetation in their way with the Osh-Tekk's large _macuahuitl_ and the Saurian's talons. Vines and branches gave way to their methodical assault, even as the both of them drew closer to the means that Kotal sought to avenge Earthrealm's brazen attack.

* * *

 _After Kotal's ignominious defeat and surrender to the Thunder God and his Shirai Ryu forces, Scorpion and two of his underlings had unceremoniously deposited the Emperor in New Z'unkahrah's dungeons, in the very same cell that once held the deceased ex-Kahnum, Mileena._

 _While Mileena had the small mercy of being imprisoned without any restraints on her person, Kotal did not. Mentally cursing the conquerors, their commander, and the immortal devil in whose name they currently occupied Outworld's capital, Kotal tried to struggle within his straitjacket without creating excessive disturbance. Unfortunately for the Emperor, he was failing miserably._

" _You're not getting out of_ that _, Moctezuma!" The guard stationed outside his door, a mere_ boy _, mocked him as another guard, who was patrolling, reprimanded him to stay quiet._

 _Kotal glowered at them, wishing for the first rays of sunlight so that he could boil these fools with the wrath of the heavenly Sun, but unfortunately, the Shirai Ryu had the basic competence to ensure that his cell had no windows, and therefore, no source of sunlight._

 _The Emperor breathed deeply and forced himself to calm down. It was no use giving into fruitless anger like an adolescent; he was better than the naïve humans who worshipped him and called him Buluc._

 _A few hours had passed, during which time Kotal did not dare fall asleep lest he be executed. Just as he had resigned himself to his ignominy, he thought he heard the distinctive sound of a Zaterran's spit. The Kahn was not mistaken, as the patrolling ninja screamed as if being burned, and he could no longer stand for he was cowering on the ground, howling in agony._

 _The younger guard was still standing, but Kotal surmised that the warrior's eyes darted from side to side, fervently looking for his unseen foe. The human's scream was lost as a stray talon swiped across his throat and his life-blood flowed out. Reptile wasted no time in snatching a ninjato and stabbing his opponent's heart, permanently silencing the other ninja whose face he had burned first. Soon enough, the only sound that remained was the steady gurgle of blood._

 _Taking care to avoid stepping in the pools of blood, Reptile unlocked the cell door and came in to free Kotal of his bonds._

" _Deceiving the jailer was simple," he answered the Kahn's unasked question._

" _Where is Ermac?"_

" _Ermac stayed behind in Earthrealm, with my people." Reptile's raspy voice sounded heartier for a moment, as he helped Kotal to his feet._

" _More Shirai Ryu will be here soon," Kotal said, as he and Reptile made their way out of the cell, carefully avoiding the pools of blood._

 _The duo's caution was for naught as a seemingly stray kunai hit the Emperor in his scarred forearm, causing him to grunt in pain as blood flowed from the embedded knife. Swift as a bird, Reptile plucked the second incoming kunai from mid-air and rolled into the Shirai Ryu ninja. Reptile slashed the supine ninja's throat and jabbed his claws into his opponent's eyes for good measure._

" _There are far too_ few _gua- Emperor!" Reptile was startled by Kotal's newest wound as he leapt to his feet._

" _Do not worry," he assured Reptile, striving to ignore the intense pain. "I have suffered far worse. Let us free Erron Black."_

" _He is on this very floor, not far from here."_

 _Under Reptile's invisibility field, the duo proceeded cautiously towards the end of the corridor. The flames of the three torches had dimmed, and would be out within the hour if no one were to refill them. The other prisoners – most of them enemies of Outworld – looked on, unable to pinpoint their exact location, but knowing that the Emperor had been freed. None dared to demand freedom, knowing Outworld rulers' penchant for summary executions._

 _As the Kahn and the Saurian neared the end of the corridor, they heard a series of ominous thumps and clanging. Swiftly, they turned right, to see a most welcome sight._

 _A lone Shirai Ryu ninja was pinned to the bars of his cell door. He was struggling to breathe; trying to reach for his neck as if prying at someone. The prisoner pulled back harder and the shinobi's limbs went slack. Erron Black pulled him back with his handcuffs one last time to finish the job, and the young guard's lifeless body slid down to the floor._

 _Reptile took the key bunch hanging from the dead guard's belt, unlocked the door and freed Black from his restraints. He was hatless, unmasked and scruffy-looking; his left eye was swollen and purple. Unmindful of his dishevelled appearance, Black flexed his wrists and said, "Looks like the Earthrealmers don't have too many guards around here. There are a few friendlies next door who could be useful."_

 _The three Osh-Tekk guards in the next cell had been stripped of their bone helms, giving them an advantage in this situation. After their cell door had been thrown open, the Kahn said to the two lower-ranked members, "Find Healer Tlaloc and escort him to the Osh-Tekk Crematorium. I will require his services. Obtain as many travelling cloaks as you can." Tlaloc was the oldest living Osh-Tekk Healer._

" _As you command, Emperor." They bowed and left._

 _The Kahn addressed the remaining guard, a higher-ranked soldier, who had more prominent tattoos than the others. "Remain with us, for the moment."_

" _Very well, my Emperor." The captain bowed._

 _Now Kotal turned to Black. "You too could use some help from the Healer. Come with us. We shall take our weapons back first."_

" _With due respect, Emperor, the eye's not as bad as it looks."_

" _Someone needs to watch over Z'unkahrah when I have left to right Raiden's wrongs." As much as he loathed to leave its citizens in the hands of a mercenary, it was better than leaving the city to the Earthrealm occupiers. "Reptile will accompany me on my journey."_

 _Black knew better than to question his orders further._

 _Using Reptile's invisibility to traverse the dungeons without further skirmishes, the foursome reached the strangely deserted prison armoury. Upon emerging to visibility, the Osh-Tekk captain unlocked its thick bronze doors. Reptile kept watch as the ruler and the mercenary examined their seized equipment. The Captain chose to pocket as many knives as he could._

 _Kotal Kahn's_ macuahuitl _and knives were not too badly damaged, considering that he had faced a god and suffered defeat. A few feet behind him, Erron Black sighed softly in frustration. It seemed he had managed to locate only one of his revolvers, and he was putting it away in its holster after having loaded it. The bandolier stitched to his cowboy hat had been ripped out, leaving the hat itself tattered; his other bandoliers were mercifully intact._

 _Satisfied with the limited inspection of his own weapons, and steadfastly ignoring the pain and fresh blood from jostling the embedded kunai, the Kahn now addressed the captain. "Free our men who have been unfairly imprisoned, and leave no invaders alive." Reptile handed the rest of the prison's keys over to the soldier, who bowed and departed._

 _The Zaterran's invisibility was employed once again to slip out of the dungeons and into the city proper. As the trio stuck together in the deserted streets in the tense Z'unkahran night, their invisibility aiding them to avoid the Shirai Ryu's infrequent patrols as they proceeded towards the Osh-Tekk Crematorium in the North, one worry refused to leave Kotal's mind: Where was Scorpion?_

* * *

 _Unlike the Earthrealmers that Kotal's people had managed to influence over the centuries, the Osh-Tekk cremated their dead with the sacred flames of their people, in obeisance to the Sun that gave them life and great power to wield. This tradition had fallen by the wayside during Shao Kahn's long rule over their erstwhile realm, but as with many good things, it had been revived after the coup that overthrew his heir Mileena._

 _One of the Osh-Tekk soldiers that Reptile had liberated approached the Emperor and his Ministers from within the Spartan, one-storied building as they entered a large antechamber. The torches in this chamber would normally be lit, but with New Z'unkahrah's fall, none remained to tend to them. A pile of neatly folded travelling cloaks was stacked in a corner._

" _Your Majesty," he spoke, bowing to them. "Healer Tlaloc was preparing for your arrival. He awaits within the Chamber of Cremation." The ruler and his two ministers entered the only other room. Its previous occupant walked briskly towards the Emperor. The only source of fire, which was a small fire at the very centre of the Chamber of Cremation, highlighted the newcomer's many necklaces of bone, obsidian and jade._

" _I came as swiftly as I could, Emperor," the tall, old Healer murmured deferentially, seizing the Emperor's injured hand and examining it briefly. He removed the kunai and placed a veined palm over the deep wound, gripping it tightly. Tlaloc's white eyes and plain tattoos - which spanned his body, extended beyond his grey-robed chest, snaked around his thin bare arms and ended with an eagle's beak on both hands - glowed bright yellow with the Sun's power: an impossible feat in the night for the most seasoned Osh-Tekk warrior, but one common for the Healer. Such prowess did come at the cost of less impressive feats of power in combat. It was an acceptable loss for most Healers, for in a culture of battle-hardened and war-worn warriors, there were never enough Healers._

 _The Healer's energy flowed into Kotal Kahn, easing the Emperor's exhaustion. He felt the pain fade to a dull throb; the bleeding slowed down and then stopped. Damaged muscle tissue and layers of skin stitched themselves together, and all that remained as evidence upon the Emperor's skin were the blood … and red lightning scars shaped like the branches of a tree. His traditional war paint had long since chipped away from his injured forearm._

" _I cannot do much for wounds of a godly nature, Emperor," Tlaloc explained, washing his hands in a bowl of warm water. "It will heal within a few days." Kotal sat on an old chair and looked around as the Healer went to Erron Black with a jar of salve for the mercenary's bruised eye._

 _The Chamber of Cremation was the only other room within the Crematorium building. A small pile of firewood occupied the northern corner of the chamber. A raised platform, which currently had the Healer's things spread out on it, was used to burn the dead with the Sun's power. A square orifice on the ceiling allowed the light of the peak sun to illuminate the chamber, but now, only Outworld's night sky was visible from within. It was the walls that drew visitors' attention first. Reptile was examining them almost reverently._

 _Like all traditional Chambers built in the erstwhile Golden Realm, its four walls were traditionally painted with the story of the Osh-Tekk Civilisation: the creation of the Golden Realm from the Ether of Nothingness at the will of the Elder Gods; the emergence of a pair of small, parallel Sun Lines on the bodies of the First Tribe of Osh-Tekk; the perilous coming-of-age rite of the Realmwalk, indicated by young, painted Osh-Tekk boys and girls walking through a fiery portal; the first awakening of the Power of the Sun; the application of mystical tattoos upon those who completed the Realmwalk; grown, painted warriors drinking the blood of their foes …_

 _Two panels had been added to this particular Chamber of Cremation at the orders of the current Kahn himself. A rough likeness of Kotal K'etz, the last ruler of independent Osh-Tekk and Kotal Kahn's late father, Kotal K'etz's Queen, and their young son Ko'atal, knelt in submission before the imposing visage of Shao Kahn._

" _How is Ferra?" the Kahn enquired of the Healer, breaking the relative silence._

" _The younger Healers have been keeping her calm with our most potent herbs," Tlaloc replied. "Otherwise, she remains as she is."_

" _She is beyond our help, then?"_

" _I have not lost hope."_

 _The sound of many footfalls brought an end to their morbid conversation. Kotal hastily sat up, thinking they had been discovered, but to his relief, it was the Osh-Tekk who their group had liberated from the dungeons. He was followed by four others, one of whom was the other freed guard._

" _My Emperor, I am called Atl," the latter began. "I have three members of your personal guard with me."_

" _Very well," Kotal replied, acknowledging them. "We shall leave immediately. Come, Reptile."_

 _Next, he addressed the others. "Escort the Healer back to safety. Erron Black." The mercenary nodded. "Keep watch over the city."_

* * *

After an uneventful while of wading and cutting through shrubs, branches and vines, Kotal Kahn and Reptile eyed an ancient Osh-Tekk pyramid before them.

The centuries of time and the merger of realms had reduced the temple's golden sheen to a dull glimmer and covered it with a myriad manner of creepers and vines, and yet, it still retained a modicum of its majesty and commanding presence that had awed Ko'atal during his long-gone boyhood in the Golden Realm. The crescent moon - the sole light in this night's purple sky - illuminated the temple's cracked steps and sacrificial altar.

The duo instinctively eyed their surroundings for predators and enemies. The only sounds Kotal could hear were the duo's breaths and the incessant creaking of nocturnal insects.

When they reached the base of the pyramid, Kotal turned to Reptile.

"This is where I must go on, alone."

"Then may the Powers That Be be persuaded by your words," Reptile said, in a rare moment of addressing the Emperor as one might a friend.

Instead of reprimanding his most valuable Minister, the Kahn nodded in gratitude and replaced his giant sword upon his back. He drew a _tecpatl_ as he ascended the steps, preparing himself for what would come.

* * *

 **Author's notes:** I'd like to thank **Poe's Daughter** for suggesting some improvements to the chapter text.

As you might've noticed, I'm not sticking to the games' or comics' canon to the letter. Given the many differences between the comics and the games, and the fact that the comics are still on-going, diverging from canon is all but necessary to tell a good story.


	2. Up the Stair Path

**Chapter Two**

 **Up the Stair Path**

Within thirty minutes of starting his ascent, Kotal Kahn had reached the altar on top of the pyramid, clearing any vines that obstructed his path. Hundreds of leagues above him, sparse grey clouds lined the violet night sky of the merged realm and lightly obscured the crescent moon.

Looking at the black granite block – the sacrificial altar - with a mix of trepidation and reluctant reverence, the Osh-Tekk warrior brought the _tecpatl_ to his left palm and cut the painted skin enough to draw a trickle of red blood. He let a few drops fall to the surface of the altar near its centre, where the ever-present vines had not yet overrun it. Nothing magical happened to indicate that his symbolic sacrifice was welcome, but Kotal would not allow something so minor to stop him from his only recourse. Not now, not when Outworld's independence was at stake.

Clearing the thick cobwebs which stood in the doorway, he walked into the pyramid's small inner sanctum and knelt at its centre, facing a gold relief of six large dragons whose mouths converged upon a plain spot. Each dragon was separated by a raised shape which represented the untainted, original forms of six legendary relics known to a select few as the Kamidogu.

"I, Kotal Kahn, rightful Ruler of the Realm of Outworld, have come to speak with the Elder Gods. I do not wish to be denied an audience."

The ceiling above him exploded into a warm, golden light, indicating an answer to his prayer. "We hear you, mortal," a chorus of male and female voices spoke in unison.

"Three days ago, the Thunder God of Earthrealm launched an unprovoked attack upon the realm of Outworld and claimed dominion with no one's sanction –"

"But you yielded to him," they stated monotonously.

"As any sane mortal would, when confronted by a powerful god!" Kotal contested hotly, uncaring that he was a supplicant in this situation. "There was no declaration of Mortal Kombat, let alone ten straight victories -!"

"He has not merged the realms –"

"But he will! Perhaps not within an Edenian's lifetime, or within ten Edenian lifetimes, but why would an invading god not take a certain chance at increasing his power?" Kotal Kahn knew that Shao Kahn was once an Outworld divinity, and he was privy to this knowledge only due to Ermac's great trust in him. The mystical being had spoken to the current Kahn about things that no other mortal ever knew … or would know.

For the first time since Kotal's plea began, the Elder Gods stayed silent. Just as his heartbeat rose rapidly, thinking that he had gravely misspoken, they replied to him, "We see and recognise your concern, Kotal Kahn. However, we will not interfere."

"When Shao Kahn, once Outworld's ruler, desired to invade Earthrealm and merge it with Outworld, you honoured Raiden's plea for a fair means of defence," Kotal beseeched the Supreme Beings. "I speak not only for myself, but for all of Outworld, when I ask that Outworld – a Realm greatly weakened from its former might - be given the same consideration."

* * *

They had most certainly seen Kotal Kahn's possibility from their place in the Heavens – one of many – but what They had seen to be the very likely one was far worse than what the Osh-Tekk mortal could conjure in his wildest dreams. Raiden, a tainted version of what he once was, wielded Shinnok's Amulet against many Realms with impunity, amassing power from submissive worshippers until he was strong enough to rise against Them.

"We must destroy Raiden before this comes to pass," a goddess among Them said. As a result, a veritable cacophony erupted among the Elder Gods.

"This is a _possibility_ -" remarked a god who wore the visage of an old man.

"We have intervened once –"

"We did not interfere when Shin-"

"Enough!" The other goddess among Them took charge. "We shall answer this mortal."

No matter how much disagreement was there among Themselves, They always answered to lesser beings with one voice. The Heavens obeyed different Laws of Time than the other imperfect Realms, which had to remain separate at all costs lest their old, common foe raised Its head again.

They conveyed Their consensus to the mortal supplicant, who invoked Raiden and Shao Kahn to make one last plea in his Realm's favour.

"Has this self-righteous mortal forgotten his own invasion?" the goddess who had spoken first scoffed.

"He raises a valid argument," the other goddess spoke.

"If I may point out something?" the god who liked to look old and deceptively mortal said. "We may have our solution to the Raiden problem _in_ this very mortal. A counterweight."

"Ah." There was a collective figurative raise of eight eyebrows.

"This is most unorthodox," a god said.

"Certainly less harmful than a second destruction in so short a time," another god mused.

"Yes," the first goddess agreed reluctantly. "A lesser course of intervention on Our part." In front of Their all-seeing eyes, new possibilities began to unfold and play out.

The Elder Gods were silent for even longer this time, and yet, their light did not disappear from the sanctum.

Minutes had passed after Kotal's last desperate plea, and if he were a lesser male, his knees would have started hurting in protest. A thin layer of sweat gathered upon his brow as he waited, his eyes shifting briefly from the glow.

"We have come to a decision. Raiden's claim of dominion over Outworld is rendered null and void, for it was made without victory in Mortal Kombat."

"Thank –" the Emperor's gratitude was halted by their next words.

"Since it was _you_ who implored us to restore Outworld its independence, it shall be _your_ responsibility to watch over it … for all eternity."

Before Kotal Kahn could comprehend their words, the light of the Elder Gods grew blindingly intense. A single, thick beam of light shot down, enveloping his kneeling mortal form entirely. Its raw power and searing heat reached into his very soul.

Before slipping into unconsciousness, he heard the Elder Gods' parting words. "Guard your Realm well … _Sun God._ "

* * *

 _Fifty years after the Mortal Kombat tournament in which Shang Tsung had claimed the Great Kung Lao's soul, it was time for another tournament in which Earthrealm was to defend itself. Ko'atal, then an Osh-Tekk warrior prince who served Shao Kahn, looked impassively towards the opposite side of Shang Tsung's courtyard, where the Thunder God and his three remaining champions stood._

 _Ko'atal's gaze fell upon the sole female of the group, who stood beside Raiden. Her countenance reminded him of the humans who worshipped him as their War God, Buluc, not very long ago in an Osh-Tekk's lifespan. The Nahua woman was unnaturally tall for a human woman of her time; a couple of inches under six feet. Her olive skin glistened with sweat due to the heat of the late afternoon sun in the open air courtyard. Her dark brown eyes looked straight ahead, eyeing no one in particular. Her long, unadorned black hair was held back by a ponytail. Her expression was carefully neutral, but upon closer observation, he thought he saw her purse her bare lips. She caught the Osh-Tekk's white-eyed gaze and her side-pierced nose flared in irritation as she returned it._

 _The old sorcerer stood up to address the crowd and announce the next match. "Two Osh-Tekk kombatants fight for the glory of their Realms, but only one shall prevail! Ko'atal versus Izel!" he proclaimed._

 _Inwardly surprised at the old sorcerer calling his opponent – a part-human who did not wield the Sun's light at that – an Osh-Tekk, Kotal Kahn teleported in a pillar of fiery snakes to one side of the arena. The Nahua woman walked on to the stone arena while taking out a pair of twin knives, lacking a means to make a visually impressive entrance in the manner of her opponent._

" _ **Fight!"**_

 _She ran towards him first, bringing a knife forward. He blocked it with a forearm guard and tried to trip her. She seemed to anticipate the move and dodged it, successfully stamping on his foot. He, in turn, caught the other arm which came to stab him, and disarmed her, pushing her away from him, ignoring her gasp of surprise._

 _Both fighters' eyes glowed yellow almost at once. Kotal's glow extended to his full-body tattoos, while Izel's Sun Lines upon her right shoulder glowed through her deep grey tunic._

 _A bright Sun Beam descended upon the Nahua woman, who dodged most of it, however, she screamed when the Sun burned her outstretched palm and forearm. As the Sun Beam had raced to the arena, the stone beneath the Osh-Tekk's feet cracked with a great noise. A pair of twin thorny vines wrapped around his bare ankles, drawing trickles of red blood and causing him to growl in pain._

 _He snapped out of the half-Osh-Tekk's pitiful trap, ran to her and slammed her to the ground near a_ naginata _-wielding guard. Izel cried out as the ground cracked beneath her, raising a small plume of dust. If she were fully human, surely there would have been broken bones from her impact. Struggling with her injured arm, she chucked a loosened chunk of stone across his face. The force of it startled him into a gasp. Just before she rolled away from beneath him, she tried to stab him with her remaining knife but could manage only a scratch._

 _Both warriors breathed hard as they got to their feet and faced each other again. Ko'atal's swollen cheek stung from the stone's blow. The woman's injured arm hung loosely by her side as her face twisted occasionally in a pained grimace. Still, she stood steadily on her feet, clutching her only knife even more tightly. He drew a sickle from his back, knowing that he had to end the fight before the daylight grew any dimmer._

 _Her armed hand extended briefly towards him. The stone arena beneath his feet cracked yet again as a thorny vine shot up from between his legs and wrapped around his neck. Before it could tighten and squeeze his breath, he chopped it off with his sickle as she charged at him like a frenzied predator, eyes aglow and knife brandished._

 _Before she could strike him like a big cat, he threw a hard back fist with his unarmed hand which hit her squarely in the face, nearly dislocating her jaw and stopping her rampage right in its tracks. He threw another punch, which caused her to drop her weapon and sent her straight to the ground._

 _She drew loud, hard breaths as she struggled to stand up again, but only made it to all fours._

" _Ko'atal wins!" Shang Tsung declared. "Finish her!"_

 _A narrow beam of sunlight came from the heavens and struck Ko'atal's fallen opponent just above the small of her back. She shrieked in excruciating agony and sank to the hard stone ground as the power of the Sun burned her flesh. He banished the Sun Beam when he saw smoke and smelled the stench of burning flesh._

 _The Osh-Tekk grabbed the hybrid by her long hair and spoke curtly near one of her ears, "You draw breath only because you are of Osh-Tekk descent, Earthrealmer." He released her roughly as she whimpered involuntarily and eyed him venomously through her tears, turned his back on her and walked away. Behind him, the Thunder God and another Earthrealm champion carried her away from the arena. The Sun's welcome rays eased and healed the wounds he had incurred._

 _The Thunder God would undoubtedly heal the worst of her injuries, but not her pride._

* * *

Syzoth's watch for any threats was interrupted by a sudden sense of increasing heaviness and heat in the air. His eyes shot upward to the apex of the temple, where Kotal Kahn had gone to plead his case to the Elder Gods.

No sooner had Syzoth seen the temple with a mixture of dread and anticipation than the ground beneath him quaked briefly, making the Zaterran stagger in shock. He regained his footing just as a portion of the ceiling of the room atop the Osh-Tekk pyramid exploded with a thunderous boom, sending flecks of stone, dust and gold into the night air. He gaped in astonishment at a thick beam of what looked like bright sunlight shot up into the atmosphere, piercing the purplish night sky like a great beacon.

Upon coming back to reality, Reptile darted up the ancient steps, barely registering the path that Kotal had carved.

The sight of the Emperor before him made him stop in his tracks, left hand on the stone doorway. "Ko'atal!" he cried out, shielding his eyes with his other hand.

The Emperor was lying on the ground, his face turned away from Syzoth. His entire body was aglow with sunlight, a column of which raced into the Outworld sky through the hole in the chamber's ceiling. His tattoos glowed as they did when he used sunlight as a weapon. While the light dimmed and vanished in three minutes, his tattoos continued to glow a bright yellow.

Any superficial wounds that he had gained in the battle had vanished; completely healed without a trace. His armour and body paint were fully restored and resplendent. If he were not still unconscious but breathing, Reptile would have called him a warrior reborn.

Syzoth went to his side and turned him on his back urgently. "Emperor!" he called out. With a sudden gasp, Kotal Kahn opened his glowing yellow eyes.

* * *

"Reptile." The Kahn got to his feet, waving Reptile's assistance off. He surreptitiously glanced at his right forearm. The lightning scars upon them had vanished without a trace. His tattoos still glowed yellow; he had never felt more reinvigorated in his life.

As if to test that his presumed godhood was no illusion, Kotal willed himself to the bottom of the pyramid's steps, and in a fiery serpentine eruption that startled the Raptor, he was there.

The newly minted Sun God revelled in his deification, summoning a Sun Beam upon himself in the deep night. His tattoos glowed even brighter in response. When he was satisfied with his display, he transported himself next to the altar on the other side of Reptile.

"You were unable to use the Sun's power in the night before," the Saurian remarked in undisguised awe.

"Indeed," said Kotal, dismissing the light from his tattoos with a mere thought. "The Elder Gods have nullified Raiden's claim over Outworld. Furthermore, they made me a god … A _true_ Sun God." Ko'atal hoped that his late father looked on in pride and forgave his missteps of the past few days.

"We will not linger here. Let us return to the capital and _wipe out_ the remaining invaders." Without giving Reptile time to respond, he teleported them both to the location of his personal guard in a luminous den of snakes.

* * *

"I'm not being paid enough for this," Erron Black grumbled and armed himself with his six shooter as unnatural blue flames erupted in a corner of his temporary hideout: a small shack tucked away on the smelly docks of New Z'unkahrah.

For three days, he'd been dressed as a civilian and giving Hasashi and his Shirai Ryu the slip. He'd seen and evaded a handful of search parties and heard of lethal interrogations regarding the Kahn's whereabouts. Apparently, some foot-soldier of the Kahn had sung about Erron instead. He wouldn't be surprised; he'd met free soldiers and civilians in an effort to take the city back, but most civilians were afraid and the few free soldiers – Osh-Tekk and human alike – wanted to lie low for the present, their morale affected by their Emperor's apparent desertion of Outworld's capital, and the recapture of most of their numbers.

Hasashi was visible when the flames had died down, leaving not a trace of char in their wake. Both of Scorpion's hands were raised; they glowed with the blue energy of Earthrealm's Jinsei. His eyes were blazing with furious azure flames, but otherwise, he showed no reaction to the gun pointed at his heart.

"So eager for a rematch?" Erron drawled, hoping to provoke the Grandmaster.

"Your firearm is no match for me, mercenary," he growled, arms still raised. "Where is your former Emperor hiding?"

"If I knew, I wouldn't tell you now, would I?"

"Your kind's loyalty can be bought and sold for coin."

"So, you want a deal," Erron stated, his eyebrows raised. Weren't ninjas rather big on honour?

"No." A ball of blue flames hit him as he fired a shot at Hasashi, who evaded the bullet with superhuman speed. The flames hit Erron with enough force that his back hit the shack's door, which shattered on impact. Erron instinctively got into a roll before he hit the floor of the docks, clutching his gun even tighter. It was fortunate that he hadn't been pierced by splinters.

The salty smell of the sea and the pungent odour of fish assaulted his nostrils and made him wish he had a mask. He got to his feet and held his gun up again.

Scorpion teleported behind him and grabbed him around the neck and torso, disarming him simultaneously. The Shirai Ryu Grandmaster pressed a kunai to his neck, almost hard enough to draw blood. Erron didn't resist.

"For the last time, mercenary," he insisted, drawing a small stream of blood. "Where is your employer?"

"His plans are his busi–"

Suddenly, Scorpion vanished in an inexplicable pillar of golden light. Gasps arose from the small crowd of civilians – most of them sailors – who'd gathered to watch their fight; they seemed as befuddled as Erron was. He took off his tattered green shirt and wiped the blood on his neck as he went to retrieve his gun. Twilight had befallen upon Z'unkahrah, and the docks didn't contain even a quarter of their usual civilian presence due to the invasion. Four ships were anchored with nowhere to go and skeletal crews to maintain them.

"Look!" a bedraggled and scrawny little boy called out, pointing at the orange-red sky in the direction of the main city. The gathering of civilians and Erron followed the boy.

A great beam of what looked like sunlight shined in the distance like a beacon. It went straight through the Realm's atmosphere and beyond. Erron could only guess its cause, but he definitely hoped that the Kahn had something to do with it. Scorpion's mysterious disappearance couldn't have been a coincidence; the gunslinger suspected that higher powers were at work. Higher powers that most Outworlders would respect, but not Erron.

* * *

Ermac's eyes were upon Earthrealm's starry, cloudy and tranquil night sky, yet their thoughts were a million leagues away. The legion of souls had come to the surface of the underground colony of Saurians, seeking to get away from overtly curious and nosy children. In the days that they had spent among the Raptors at Reptile's behest, this spot had become a place of refuge when Ermac needed to think and reflect undisturbed.

Their souls' agitation had grown as of late, manifesting as a malaise which pestered their mind and body from time to time. Their mortal shell had been decaying ever so slowly since their creator's demise, and Mileena's measures to keep them intact had been successful, albeit in a limited way.

As Ermac floated towards a rustling bush in the surrounding woods, which had been only sparsely disturbed by human activity from a nearby devastated city – at least in the time that the Saurians had taken refuge and prospered as they could in the labyrinth of caverns below – they felt a sense of foreboding. Parting the bush with delicate telekinetic energy, they saw the hastily concealed body of a young male Raptor in his prime.

Ermac could see no injuries or decay on the Saurian's person, and yet, he could sense no life signs. His blank, glassy eyes were wide open in astonishment at an unseen foe. The skin of his corpse was much paler than usual, as if _something_ had been taken from his body.

Their eyes widened as the implications began to dawn on them. Just as they expanded their senses to find the culprit, they felt something hot and flaming brush across their chest, striking the metallic restraint. A sizzle and hiss disrupted the quiet night, and Ermac clutched their bleeding chest in shock and pain.

Two bright green souls slipped through Ermac's fingers like gusts of precious air and floated away between two trees before they could do anything. Even as they tried to will their body to heal, many more souls broke free and floated away like the rushing waters of a mighty river.

In seconds, Ermac was too weak to levitate or lift a small boulder. They stretched a free arm and stumbled towards their foe, who had now emerged from behind the trees and was standing between them, greedily snatching the source of Ermac's power; the means of their existence. "You!" they gasped weakly in a multitude of strained voices, gazing unsteadily upon their assailant as they staggered from dizziness and exhaustion. They fell to their knees and their sight dimmed rapidly from the edges; the forest around them made no sounds.

When the last of the souls left their mortal cage, the spectral being known as Ermac ceased to exist.

* * *

 **Author's notes:** Thanks for the reviews, favourites and alerts on the first chapter. Please leave a review if you feel like it; I welcome both positive and negative feedback.

I'd like to thank **Poe's Daughter** for improving this chapter and helping me out with the first fight scene.

 **Responses to anonymous reviewers**

 **fandelivres:** Thanks a lot for reviewing! I'm glad you like it, and I hope this chapter is just as good.

 **Guest:** Kotal is my favourite new character as well. I hope the developments in this chapter are to your liking. MKX did a great job in redeeming Reptile's character and I'm more than happy to continue in MKX's vein. He's been fun to write; almost everyone has. Thank you for the review!


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